The title above is not just a catchy rhyme to make you feel warm and fuzzy about the future; I believe it’s absolutely true and prophetic of this year. I am praying that 2024 will be a year of victory, breakthrough, promotion, increase, harvest, and divine intervention not only individually, but nationally, and globally. It’s an election year (don’t worry, I’m not going to meddle into politics) so I’m praying that God will raise up some strong, godly leaders to turn the tide of evil in our nation.
God is still pouring out His Spirit globally on those who are hungry. This began on the day of Pentecost and will continue until Christ returns (Ac. 2:17-21). If you are satisfied where you are spiritually, then that’s where you’ll stay. But if you want to grow and go higher, then God has more in store for you in 2024. Jesus didn’t come to give us a mediocre life. He declared, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (Jn. 10:10). The Message reads, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.” Christ wants us to enjoy life to the fullest. So, don’t settle for less than God’s best.
Jesus warned the lukewarm Laodicean Church and casual Christians today: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot . . . so then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth” (Rev. 3:15-16). Jesus used a local analogy they all understood. One commentator explains, “Cold water is preferred for drinking and hot water is preferred for bathing. Laodicea lacked its own natural water supply. So, water was piped in from hot springs six miles away but it was lukewarm when it reached the city. Although the water could be heated, the lukewarmness of the local water was a common complaint of the residents, most of whom had an otherwise comfortable lifestyle. Jesus was saying, if you were hot (like bathing water) or cold (like drinking water) you would be useful; but I feel toward you the way you feel toward your water supply—you make me sick!”
We must resist the “I’ve arrived” mentality. It’s easy to get complacent, become passive, and settle for the status quo. We must keep striving, reaching, working, praying, learning, growing, and stretching our faith. Jesus continued, “Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’ and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (Rev. 3:17). Then Jesus used three more local analogies to appeal to them: “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed . . . and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see” (Rev. 3:18). What the city of Laodicea offered naturally, they lacked spiritually.
1. Buy of Me gold refined in the fire: Laodicea was known for its banking and commerce. It was a wealthy city which refused Roman disaster relief after the earthquake of AD 60 and rebuilt with its own resources. They were rich financially but poor spiritually.
2. Buy of Me white garments that you may be clothed: Laodicea was famous for its textile industry, especially their black wool. They wore fine fashion naturally but they were spiritually naked. White garments symbolize imparted righteousness in Scripture. The Bride of Christ is arrayed in fine, white linen (Rev. 19:8) but our own righteousness is like filthy rags (Is. 64:6).
3. Anoint your eyes with eye salve: Laodicea was also known for its medical school and famous for its ear medicines and eye ointments. They had doctors and medicines to help them see and hear physically but they were blind and deaf spiritually.
Jesus called them and is calling us to repent. “Be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Rev. 3:19-20). Preachers often quote this passage for sinners, but Jesus was talking to saints. They left Him outside and He was knocking on the door of His own church. They were running their own program and excluding Him. Then Jesus gave a promise, “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His” (Rev. 3:21). We can cling to the status quo, or we can reign with Him in the power of His Spirit. God has more in store.
Paul wrote that he had not yet arrived but was still passionately pursuing the prize—“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on . . . Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, for getting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:12-14). What’s so remarkable is Paul wrote these words about thirty years after his conversion as a seasoned veteran of the Faith. After preaching to thousands, establishing churches, working many miracles, and writing thirteen books of the New Testament, Paul still didn’t feel like he had arrived. Neither should we. Like Paul, we should keep striving for the goal of becoming like Christ and meeting Him face to face at the finish line. In this passage, Paul gave us three important keys to spiritual success:
• Key #1: Forget the past. “The past is a guidepost, not a hitching post.”“You cannot change the past, but the past can change you, either for better or for worse . . . The past can be a rudder that guides you or an anchor that hinders you. Leave your past mistakes with God and look to the future by faith.” If we live in the past, we will forfeit our future. If we focus on our past failures, they will rob us of confidence that the future can be better. If we’re consumed with past successes, then we’ll become complacent and never attempt to do greater things. “Unless we do something beyond what we’ve already mastered, we’ll never grow.” So, leave the past where it belongs—in the rearview mirror. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift from God!
• Key #2: Reach forward to the future. No matter how long we’ve been serving God, He still has more in store for us down the road. We must learn to face the future with faith instead of fear. Holocaust survivor Corrie Ten Boom said, “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” Don’t be afraid of the future because God is already there!
• Key #3: Keep pressing toward the prize. When we realize we haven’t arrived yet, it should motivate us to keep striving toward the finish line. Jesus said, “He who endures to the end will be saved” (Mt. 10:22). The Christian race is a marathon not a sprint. So, keep passionately pursuing after the prize. What is the prize? Perfection. Christ-likeness. This will only be fully realized in the resurrection. We’ve come a long way, but we’re not there yet. Keep aiming for the bullseye.
Remember Caleb’s bold request and conquest? “Give me this mountain!” (Josh. 14:12) At the ripe old age of 85, Caleb was still not ready to retire. He knew God had more in store for him. You’d think he’d settle down in a corner of Canaan and tell war stories to his grandkids. Not Caleb. He wasn’t satisfied living in the low land, he wanted higher ground. He claimed and conquered a mountainous region inhabited by Anakims, a clan of giants. Imagine an 85-year-old man wielding his sword Zoro style against the overgrown sons of Anak (Josh. 15:14). Hebron, the area he conquered, was 3,040 feet above sea level, the highest place in Palestine. It was later designated as a city of refuge (Josh. 20:7) and became King David’s capitol for seven years (2 Sam. 2:11). Hebron means “alliance, league, or confederacy.” Caleb was victorious because he was in alliance with God’s will. He wanted more and God gave it to him.
When there’s room for nothing else, there’s always room for growth and improvement. There are more giants to fight, more battles to win, more songs to sing, more prayers to pray, more sermons to preach, more souls to win, more lives to touch, more visions to fulfill, and more mountains to climb. Yes, friends, God has much more in store in 2024!